


You are such a nerd. But you're awesome.

by Humbleapplecrumble



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Amy Santiago POV, Angst, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Get Together, Happy Ending, Inspired by Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV), Jake Peralta has ADHD, Jealousy, Peraltiago, Short Story, b99 - Freeform, brooklyn nine nine - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-15
Updated: 2018-09-16
Packaged: 2019-07-12 14:39:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15997304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Humbleapplecrumble/pseuds/Humbleapplecrumble
Summary: "Every now and then Amy allowed herself a glance over the top of her computer screen. This was the sad story of Amy Santiago; her crushingly deep love of a man she would never end up with."Amy's POV about her love for her coworker and the mess she gets herself into. A nice/angsty story with a happy ending.





	1. The Sad Story of Amy Santiago

**Author's Note:**

> AU: No Teddy, no romantic stylez. Just an idea I had as I am addicted to JP/AS get-togethers and like the idea of Amy pining for Jake as we see a lot of the other way around on TV.

Every now and then Amy allowed herself a glance over the top of her computer screen. This was the sad story of Amy Santiago; her crushingly deep love of a man she would never end up with. Jake Peralta was her colleague and partner - cop relationships just never worked out. And regardless, Jake loved Sophia. She wasn't going to pretend that she wasn't quite pleased (OK, ecstatic) when they broke up, but the way he pined for her made her heart hurt much more than when they had been together.

The weeks after Sophia and Jake broke up were rough, not just for him, but the whole precinct. There was an eerie stillness that he once filled, a hole in the atmosphere that appeared along with his pain. It seemed this was his worst breakup since Jenny Gildenhorn, and thankfully that had happened so long ago the Nine-Nine had never had to experience it. The morning after it happened, he had entered the office quietly. Yes, quietly. No foghorn, no ego-related announcements, no singing, no admiring the good-looking men and women that wandered the lockup that day, nothing. The thing that hurt the detectives the most was that he stopped making fun of everyone. Without any gusto, Detective Peralta came to work and just did his job. Weird. Very weird.

And so, a month or so later, the cops of the ninety-ninth precint had an instant mental connection when Jake entered the building and made a joke about the lilac shirt Charles was wearing.  
"Boyle, didn't you learn your lesson? Do you aim to look like a delicate eggplant? You are literally the junk emoji."  
Each one of the detectives instantly panned around the room and made eye contact with one another. He was back. Thank God, he was back.

It was a slow return, but bit by bit Jake regained the confidence they all knew so well and he returned to his wonderful, goofy, irritating, unique self. And Amy was so thankful for it.

People who didn’t know Det. Jake Peralta usually thought he was an idiot. They weren’t intimidated by him, didn’t expect to be outsmarted by him. But they always were. Amy often wondered if the Nine-Nine were the only people who did truly know Jake for who he really was. He was a damn good detective, but in addition to that, he was honest, kind and treated his friends like they were gold. In the end he would always make the right decision, not the selfish decision and would put himself through hell and back to help others, probably to a fault. It wasn’t clear when you first met him, but when you knew him like the Nine-Nine did, you saw he had a huge moral compass. Sure, he made more jokes than anyone else they knew and could rarely say more than one serious thing consecutively, but more often than not he was joking around to make someone else feel better. His ADHD meant he constantly had the messiest desk any precinct had ever seen and could never participate in a whole conversation without interrupting every other sentence (again, usually to make a joke), but when she honestly thought about it those things actually contributed to his talent at solving puzzles. So many thoughts flew through Jake's mind when he investigated a case that the answer was always there somewhere, he just had to find it. Amy could faintly remember a time, long ago, when Jake drove her crazy beyond recognition, but these days it was impossible to see any of his attributes as flaws. It was quite the opposite.

And beyond his wonderful qualities, the painful truth was that Amy had just never met anyone that made her smile like he did. No one had ever made her laugh so much her cheeks hurt, surprised her day after day with such quick wit or made her a better person as well as a better detective. She could pin down the exact moment she realised she had been in love with her coworker:

The Nine-Nine detectives sat down to Thanksgiving the previous year in their briefing room. Even though he hated Thanksgiving and everything it stood for, Jake entered the room in smart suit that actually fit him properly unlike a lot of his clothes and the squad cheered his arrival. He pulled up a chair next to her while Rosa eyed him suspiciously.  
"What are you wearing?"  
"Santiago said to dress up, so..." he turned and smiled.  
Ugh. That damn smile. She had joked that he looked beautiful, but he did. He really did.  
She loved her police colleague. Oh, balls.

But that seemed a lifetime ago - since then, Jake had been in a pretty serious relationship with Sophia, which alongside Amy's "no cop" rule, and the fact she was certain he didn't find a thing about her attractive, left her empty inside. So here she was, the girl who lets herself stare at the man she loves when she's fairly sure he isn't looking. Pathetic.

-

Today, Amy had ploughed through a pile of paperwork that was enough even to put her off, despite using her favourite pen. The crime statistics were due and Holt needed a win, so she put her heart and soul into upping the numbers as much as she could. As they pulled on their coats, she noticed Jake staying in his seat. Chewing his lip, eyebrows furrowed, he looked the way he did when Holt challenged his maths ability.

"Peralta?"  
He blinked hard and looked back at her. "Sorry. Can I ask you something? I have a problem that I should have solved by now and... haven't."  
"Sure." Amy returned to her seat and put her handbag on the floor. "Everything OK?"  
"Yeah. No. Ages ago, when me and Sophia were still dating, we got invited to this charity ball thing by a friend we both know. I figured once we broke up I wouldn't have to go, but he's text me saying he's looking forward to catching up and he hopes it won't be awkward. Which it will be. Obviously."  
The S word alone was enough to make her heart sink. He wasn't over her after all. "Yeah, I guess so. Are you going to go?"  
"Yeah, I have to. I'm not that much of a jerk. Stupid charity. I'm going to make myself look like an idiot."  
Amy smiled. "Actually, I know exactly what you need to do!"  
Jake pulled in his chair at that note and fixed his posture. "Santiago, yes! What do I do?"  
"You need to take a date. Even if it's not a real date... that'd probably work better, actually. Is there a girl you know? Maybe you could take Rosa. No, she'd probably punch you. Gina?"  
"Ames, what are you talking about?"  
"Show her up! She's expecting you to turn up to this thing alone, right? You need to meet a girl there and make it obvious in front of her." Amy was in detective-mode now. "Pretend to flirt with her there, make it obvious you've swapped numbers. You might have to kiss them in front of Sophia to really get her attention, so definitely not Rosa. Then, as the party ends, walk out with her. Wave goodbye to Sophia on the way so she knows you're taking a girl home. She'll be so mad, you'd look awesome, it'd tick all the boxes."  
"Amy Santiago, you are such a dog! But who am I going to get to do all that?"  
"You've got to know someone. What about Gina, or that girl you knew at the morgue?"  
Jake said nothing but raised his eyebrows, widened his eyes and gave her one of his goofiest grins.  
Oh dear. This was bad. "Jake. No. I... No, Jake!"  
"But you're perfect! It's your plan so you could execute it perfectly, she hasn't met you so it's totally believable, come on, it's like an undercover case! You're great at those!"  
"Yeah, but..."  
"It's settled, you're doing this. What an awesome idea, Ames! You're right, Sophia is going to be so jealous that someone else is getting a piece of this. You're the best! See you there around seven?"

He had already started walking out of the precinct but Amy stayed in her desk chair. How on God's green Earth was she going to get through this? Pretending to be a girl Jake was into even though she wishes every day that she was an actual girl he was into. But none of this would be real, it's all to impress another girl. The same girl that was so precious to him, she stole his spirit. She did not need to meet a woman capable of such a thing.  
And what if she really has to kiss him? Oh. God. What has she got herself into? This was bad. Very, very bad. Stupid, stupid Amy.


	2. You were right, Kylie.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Before long her phone buzzed.  
> "Come flirt with me Santiago. Turd Eagle is in the nest"

Amy twiddled her thumbs nervously in the taxi. Jake had texted her the address and she'd be there in a few minutes. She'd decided to take Kylie along so she had someone to sit with at the bar; it'd look pretty strange if she sat alone all night and at least she could pretend (for her own benefit as well as for the cover) that they were just on a girls' night out. She pleaded she looked OK, then scolded herself for thinking that. She'd changed outfits ten times. It doesn't matter if she looks OK or not, Jake won't be noticing her. It really didn’t help that she'd previously seen a photograph of Sophia. Damn, she was beautiful.

In addition to that, to twist the knife in the wound of her heart a little further, Sophia was exactly the kind of woman that Amy respected. Confident, strong, fierce and never letting anyone get in the way of her career or her aspirations. She wouldn't change for anyone else, she would be the woman she wanted to be. She was educated and kept those around her on their toes - even Jake. True, she'd gone into a career that the police felt was literally for those with no shred of conscience throughout their entire body, but nonetheless, she was damn good at it. Sophia was impressive. Even if Terry had suggested Jake be checked for rabies.

But Terry had also said that Jake had "met his match" with her. It was true. And it hurt like hell.

"Remind me why you're doing this again?" Kylie clearly did not approve. Although, to be fair, she rarely did. Especially when it came to Jake. They had only crossed paths once before, and Jake had a-little-too-loudly called her a computer drone, so that was the end of their extremely short relationship.  
Amy glanced out of the window to avoid making eye-contact with her friend. "He's been devastated since they broke up. He just doesn't want to look like an idiot."  
"Are you sure about this? It seems kinda weird to me."  
"Of course, it'll be fine. Besides, we can have some drinks and catch up. It's an excuse for a night out." Amy could have laughed. It'll be fine? She wasn't successfully persuading herself any of that was true, never mind Kylie.

They found two seats near the end of the bar and ordered strawberry daiquiris. Halfway through the drink Amy felt herself loosening up and enjoying the pleasant atmosphere of the hall. She listened to Kylie's work stories and caught her up on the strangest perps she'd arrested lately. The white dancefloor spotlights bounced off the elaborately decorated walls and music hummed softly, warming the room. Eventually she told herself that this night was not so bad.

Until his voice came from behind her.

"Bartender? Another cocktail for the lady?"  
Kylie rolled her eyes. "I'm going to the bathroom."  
Jake took her seat. "Oo, it's warm. Hi, Jake Peralta." He offered her his hand along with a smug expression.  
"Ah. Hi. Amy Santiago. Thanks for the drink." She ignored the fact that he looked absolutely perfect in his suit and she definitely ignored the way the lights from the bar mirrors glistened in his youthful eyes. Totally ignored it.  
"How's your robot friend? Did she install the need to go to the bathroom during her latest update?"  
Amy smiled but felt the need to defend her friend. "Leave her alone. She's nice! She agreed to come to this crazy plan we've come up with just to keep me company, give her some credit."  
Jake laughed and paid the bartender for her drink, before looking back at her. "You, uh, you look really nice."  
Not blushing. Definitely not blushing. "Oh, thanks. So do you," she replied, trying to sound as composed as you possibly can when the love of your life compliments your appearance.  
"So, how do you wanna play this? I feel like you would definitely approach me next time because you simply needed more Peralta. That's what usually happens, so it's more believable."  
Amy laughed and rolled her eyes dramatically. "Yeah, OK, I'll come to you next time. Text me when you want me to come over? I don't wanna gatecrash if you end up managing to talk to Sophia. Is she here yet?"  
"Uh, yeah, she's with some other pieces of murderer-defending garbage. I haven't spoken to her, just gave her a cool-guy wave."  
"A cool-guy wave?"  
"Yeah, it's a thing! Charles and me came up with it."  
"Well I guess it must be real then."  
"I can hear your sarcasm, but if you listened to our advice maybe you'd be as cool as us. You'll learn one day, Ames. Anyway, catch you later?"  
Ames. Man, she loved it when he called her that. "Yeah, see you later."

Before long her phone buzzed.  
"Come flirt with me Santiago. Turd Eagle is in the nest"  
Amy looked guiltily at her friend. She was not hiding her disapproval of this plan in the slightest.  
"Amy, are you sure about this? I know you always say you don't, but we both know you like him. You spend so much time together and you talk about him all the time. If you have to go through with this ridiculous plan and pretend-kiss him when you actually want to real-kiss him, that is gonna suck, big time."  
"Kylie, I..."  
"-And what if this ex-girlfriend does get jealous, does approach him and he ends up leaving with her instead of pretend-leaving with you? There is literally no desirable outcome here. Considering you're a detective, you have not thought this through."  
She was onto her. Time to cover. "It's not like that. Even if I did like him, which I don't, nothing could ever happen anyway because we work together. I have a no-cops rule and I'm sticking to it, it would only end up in disaster. I'm doing this because I'm his friend, he's been so down lately." Amy hated lying to her friend about her feelings but Kylie was super disapproving of Jake and it just made things easier if she agreed she disapproved too. Besides, she wasn't lying. She was Jake's friend before anything else and she did want him to be happy.  
"If you say so. I'll be here if you need me," she smiled softly, before turning to the bartender. "I'm going to need a gin please, a big one."

Amy's eyes wandered around the room until she caught Jake's eye. He smiled at her and gestured with a slight nod that she come over. She obeyed and moved in his direction, taking the opportunity to look around the hall. It was decorated beautifully and the lighting was low, a glass chandelier hanging delicately in the centre of the ornate ceiling; it would be so romantic for people who were actually in a romantic situation.

Jake placed his drink on a nearby table and took a step towards her. "Hi. How's the Ice Machine?"  
"Leave her alone! She only doesn't like you because you literally insulted her to her face. Isn't that fair enough?"  
"I insult everyone! I literally insult you everyday and you basically love me. She needs rewiring."  
Jake was clueless. He clearly had no idea how his partner really felt, which meant he thankfully hadn't noticed her secret glances across the briefing room where she'd admire the erratic curls in his hair, adore the way he'd stick his tongue in his cheek when he was confused and ache for the way he fidgeted with his hands when he was nervous or deep in thought. She felt like telling him that for once he was a being really bad detective.

Instead, she just smiled back at her partner. "How's it going? Has Sophia talked to you yet?"  
His cheery face formed into a more glum expression. "Nah, I'm pretty sure she's avoiding me."  
"Oh." Amy pushed the friend-version of herself to the forefront of her mind. That's it, she's ignoring her feelings and doing what's right for her friend. "I'm saying this because I'm a great partner, and because I've had a couple of drinks, but mostly because I'm a great partner. If you want to make her jealous, maybe we need to put the next part of the plan in place."  
After a quick flash of confusion, followed by one of understanding, Jake grinned. "Can you handle it, Santiago? I have kissed over 5 women. Oh my God, will it be your first? I should tell you, kissing is when two people's lips press against each other. I'll find a book that'll explain everything."  
Amy punched him in the arm. "Jake! I know how to kiss. Anyway, I've read those books."  
"You are such a nerd. But you're awesome," his expression became soft, his eyebrows furrowed. "You sure?"  
"Yeah, I'm sure." A glance to her right confirmed that Sophia had indeed noticed her ex-boyfriend chatting up a girl. "Jake, she's looking."  
Without further discussion, Jake stepped towards her and brushed the hair behind her left ear. He closed the short distance between them, slowly, and brushed his lips against hers. Amy closed her eyes and unintentionally kissed him back gently as his hand continued to cradle her head. After a second, as if splashed with cold water, she remembered the reality of this made-up situation and carefully pulled away. The detectives looked at each other in a way that was new to them both, each one of them feeling the gravity of the scenario they had suddenly sound themselves in. And they both responded in a way they should have seen coming. As expected, Jake broke the silence first.  
"Cool, cool cool c-cool cool. Cool."  
"Uh, yeah. No doubt. Noice. Dog. Cool, cool. Uh, see you in a bit?"  
"Cool, yeah, cool cool cool." He pushed his hands into his trouser pockets. "See you, uh, soon."  
Cool. Nice save, Santiago.

Amy sheepishly returned to the bar and slipped back into the stool Kylie had saved for her, slumping the weight of her upper body on the bar and hanging her head in her hands. She felt a comforting hand brush over her shoulder.  
"Amy, are you OK?"  
It was time to admit defeat. She wasn't strong enough to hide this. "Oh God, I'm sorry. You were right, Kylie." She lifted her head to look her friend in the eye. "I'm in love with Jake Peralta."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to anyone who has kept reading. You guys are amazing!


	3. Don't act like a "crazy idiot".

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They had been talking for what seemed like an eternity. No doubt they were back together and were planning the names of their future babies.

Amy felt a stone lighter after admitting her biggest secret to her best friend.  
"I'm sorry, Kylie. I meant what I said about the no-cop rule, and I've tried to convince myself that it was never going to happen, that it was stupid to even let myself think about it, but..."  
"Bartender? Bottle of wine, please."  
Amy nodded in approval. Even though Kylie really disliked (she never said ‘hated’) Jake, she was always a good friend to Amy. Wine was a good call.  
"You know I'm not exactly his biggest fan, but, I don't think the idea is that ridiculous..."  
That she was not expecting. "What? What do you mean?"  
"OK, so part of the plan was to kiss to make his ex jealous, right? I'm betting that him staring after you as you walked away wasn’t on the itinerary."  
"Wh-what? No way..."  
"I'm sorry for watching, but I was worried about you. I don't think this is one-sided, Amy. He has this look on his face when he's talking to you. And he couldn't stop smiling after you left. I think he likes you too."  
That was a ludicrous idea. "You just don't know Jake that well, that's all. He's smiley and goofy around everyone, that's what people love about him."  
"Hmm. I don't know, this seems different. Drink some wine."

As the night wore on the ladies at the bar discussed work and friends and probably other things, but Amy could not stop thinking about what Kylie had said so couldn't take most of it in. To make things worse, after a bathroom break they lost their seats which meant they had to relocate, and in doing so they had noticed Sophia approach Jake and they had been talking for what seemed like an eternity. No doubt they were back together and were planning the names of their future babies. They'd all have die hard names, would live with a fridge that was always over-flowing with hot wings and would become a family of professional ping pong players. Amy would die alone, beaten to death by a disgruntled perp with a ring binder. It was basically set in stone.

So it was to her surprise when Kylie stopped mid-sentence and said:  
"Amy, I think you have a visitor," she smiled and nodded to her left. Jake stood there with his usual smile that made him look like a teenager rather than a thirty year old man.  
"Oh, Jake, hi, again," she mumbled, tripping over her words.  
Kylie placed a hand on Amy's arm. "Look, I think I better leave you to it, I've got an early start tomorrow. Text me in the morning?"  
Amy hugged her friend hard. "Of course, thank you so much, you're the best." In all fairness, she was amazed Kylie had even stayed this long. She really was a good friend.

"Can I join you?" he asked nervously.  
"Yeah, sure. Wine?" Nervous Jake was not something she was used to; she figured wine would help.  
Jake nodded and walked towards the bar to ask for an extra glass. As he returned, Amy told herself specifically to not look at his lips. And to not act like a "crazy idiot" as Jake had so lovingly advised her in the past.

"I know you came here to help me out, but I hope you have actually managed to have a nice time. Have you?"  
Amy nodded reassuringly. "Actually yeah, I have. Kylie didn't even seem to hate it, either, which is a bonus!"  
"Is it because this place had a USB port she could plug herself into?" Responding to Amy's disapproving frown, he continued. "I'm sorry, I'm done. She's not so bad. I just need to teach her what humour is. She'll love me."  
"Hmm, keep dreaming, Peralta."  
Jake took a swig of his wine. The alcohol had calmed Amy's nerves, but she just had to ask. "So, you talked to Sophia?"  
He placed the glass down and looked back at her. "Yeah, I did. And honestly, I don't know what I was so worked up about." She expected to see a look of disappointment but she only saw the Jake she knew best. Goofy, happy, Jake.  
"What do you mean?"  
"Well, I wanted Sophia to be jealous - which she was, by the way, so well done you - but I don't know why I cared. Honestly, when I really think about it, she didn't even like me. I mean, she did, obviously, but I don't think she liked me for who I actually am. We just had some stuff in common. But she hated my jokes, despised my job and never wanted anything to do with my friends because of her police-story phobia. Why would I even want to be around someone like that?"  
Amy wasn't sure how to respond. "Well... You're right, that makes sense. You should be with someone who loves who you are already, right?" At that, she told herself to chill. Don't get over-confident, Drunk Amy.  
"Yeah, exactly. I always felt like I had to change for her,” Jake rubbed the back of his head then let his fingers circle around the opposing wrist, one and then swapping to the other. Nerves? But why?  
He continued. “...Yeah. She’s a demon. You get it,” he smiled at her and she swore as she looked up at him that she could see his soul through the dark shades of brown that danced around his iris. “And kudos to you, as usual, Santiago. Your plan worked way better than anything I could have come up with tonight.”

Amy wasn’t sure how long she was trapped in Jake’s gaze for, or what happened next, but before she could take in the details of her surroundings she found his arms around her, pulling her close, his lips slightly parted against hers which began mirroring his, her hands moving slowly over his chest to the back of his neck. Jake kissed her a little harder and she welcomed it, let him take over her as she melted into his body. His hands ran over her back and he felt strong as he tightened his grasp on her.

In that moment the entwined detectives were the only people in Brooklyn until Jake’s work phone sprang to life. He waited a second before pulling his lips away from hers, but left his arms around her for a moment longer.

He chewed his lip as he fumbled for his phone, throwing her an apologetic look. “Sorry, I, wait here, please?”  
Amy nodded and tried her best to not look disappointed. She didn’t know what to think and was too scared to make any assumptions. They’d both had a few drinks and kissing was part of "the plan", assuming anything would be dumb. As she watched him hurriedly walk away she noticed Sophia at the opposite end of the room, staring right back at her. Amy dropped her gaze and fiddled with the base of her wine glass to keep her hands busy. She loathed Sophia for making him feel that way; she didn’t want to change a little bit about Jake. Even his worst habits, particularly those involving his poor time keeping or occasional bad hygiene. Sure, they drove her crazy, but she’d never change him. Never.

A few minutes passed before Jake reentered the hall and it had given Amy enough time to convince herself this was not a good idea. Kissing her coworker was too much for her heart to take; their friendship, and more importantly their partnership, was not worth the risk. Grabbing her purse, she threw back the last of the wine and searched her mind for an excuse to get the hell out of there.

Cover compromised. Abort mission.


	4. Stay with me.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not for the first time that evening, the floor fell from below Amy Santiago's feet.

"Ames? Are you leaving?"  
Amy had not had a sufficient amount of time to formulate a believable excuse. "Uh, yeah, I think I should just... It's late, so..." She made to walk past him so she could return home with what little dignity she had left.  
Jake stopped her with his hand and stood directly in front of her. "Don't." He placed his hands on either side of her shoulders and looked at her intently. "Stay."

Not for the first time that evening, the floor fell from below Amy Santiago's feet. In her day-to-day life she was used to being in control, which is something she had not felt from the second this night had started. She braved a few words. "You... want me to stay?"

That damn smile. "Yes. Stay with me. Look, I know I came here tonight to annoy Sophia and maybe trick her into regretting breaking up with me, but since I got here all I've actually done is make excuses to come and hang with you." Jake's expression was earnest and vulnerable, his eyes wide, like he was taking a risk. Little did he know this was a slam-dunk.  
Like a schoolgirl with a crush, Amy attempted to hide her beaming smile but failed spectacularly. "OK. I'll stay."  
"You will? Cool, cool," he looked around the room as if he was searching for what to say next. "Do you maybe, wanna, dance with me?"

Some nights, when she struggled to sleep, Amy had imagined this exact scenario. And just like she had pictured, the floor was busy with slow-dancing men and women, a soft country song filled the room and at this hour the only light came from candles and soft, glowing lamps that were scattered throughout the hall. Jake nervously gestured for her hand and she gratefully took it, so he led her to the dancefloor, weaving in and out of the couples and families that had already taken up residence there. The detectives stopped when they found a space and came back into contact, Amy's hand carefully on Jake's shoulder and his delicately on her waist, like she was fragile and might break at any moment. The partners had known each other for years, but the butterflies in her stomach told her that this was entirely new. She prayed that the hand he was holding onto so carefully wasn't too sweaty.

For a while the Nine-Niners danced together, glancing at each other every now and then and suppressing smiles that would inevitably escape through the corners of their mouths. Amy had dreamt of this moment over and over again, but her head was starting to cloud with doubt. If this was her chance to finally be honest with her colleague, best friend and love of her life, she had to take it.

"Jake, can I ask you a question?"  
He cocked his head slightly, a smile with a touch of concern in his eyes. "Yeah, of course."  
Here goes. She took a deep breath; she just needed to know for sure. "Just before... Did you kiss me because it was part of the plan? Or because..."

In true Peralta-style, Jake interrupted. But not with a joke, an insult or random noise like he often did. Instead he kissed her once more. His land left her grasp and curled around her waist to join the other; in turn pulling her closer, their whole bodies meeting in the middle. His lips left her's but their foreheads stayed firmly pressed against one another, as though they each supported each other's weight. Amy decided she loved being interrupted; attention deficit could be a blessing. 

Jake then took a deep breath and emptied the thoughts that must have been bouncing around his head. 

"I always told myself we had so much fun together because we were really great friends and really awesome detectives. Which I guess is true. I mean, obviously. We’re awesome.”  
He smiled softly at her and continued, his tone more serious this time. Amy’s eyes were beginning to water and she wasn’t sure she was strong enough to persuade them to stop. “At work it’s easy to tell myself that because we’re so busy all the time, we don’t get many opportunities to overthink anything. But I can’t come here and see you like this and keep lying about how I feel about you.” Jake paused, acknowledging his colleague was yet to respond and lowered his voice a little more. “You’re beautiful, and the smartest person I know, and... I’m crazy about you.”

Amy leaned a little heavier on her partner to keep her upright. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing and wasn’t sure how to respond just yet. 

The nerves kept Jake talking. “I’m sorry, I know this is a lot to lay on you all at once. And I know it’s super complicated since we work together. I don’t wanna lie to you anymore, but I don’t wanna scare you away either.”  
At that, Amy knew it was her turn to be the honest one. She pulled her face back to look into his eyes as a tear escaped one of her’s and ran down the crease of her nose.   
“It’s always been you, Jake.”

He smiled his goofiest smile and kissed her forehead gently, leaving his lips rested there. The detectives swayed to the Neko Case song that played in the background and quietly internalised the shift in their relationship. 

Amy had thought quite enough for one night.   
“Can I ask you a follow-up question?”   
Jake pulled back this time and looked at her with those big, dark eyes that appeared bigger than ever. “Yeah, anything.”  
Amy swallowed. “Do you wanna take me home?”  
Her colleague raised his eyebrows so they creased his forehead and widened eyes, his lips slightly parted. Jake’s surprised face was rare and Amy felt a warm sense of pride. A few seconds passed and his true Peralta-style smile that showed prominently through his cheeks in the most unique and perfect way emerged and looked back at her.   
“Hell. Yes. Get your coat.”

The detectives almost skipped out of the building, hand in hand, awkwardly pulling coats over their shoulders, grins too big for their faces. They pushed past the remaining crowd and through the doors, jumping into the nearest taxi, their fingers staying tightly interlocked. 

Jake never did remember to wave goodbye to Sophia.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has kept on reading! I loved writing a longer story this time and am super thankful for the support. 
> 
> Nine-nine!

**Author's Note:**

> Second fic I've written so I'd love any feedback! Love being inspired by a great show and all of you wonderful writers. Thanks for reading :)


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